Donald Trump’s immigration stances spark strong responses
Mexicans burn an effigy of U.S. Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump. Photo Credit: REUTERS/Henry Romero
The outrage sparked south of the American border by Donald Trump’s anti-immigration views reached a fiery frenzy over Easter weekend. Traditionally, effigies of Judas Iscariot are burnt during the Mexican Holy Week. Last weekend, however, papier-meche depictions of Trump went up in flames in villages across Mexico. Anthropologists say the ritual can serve as a way to overcome divisions and unite against a common enemy.
It appears much of Mexico has agreed on who their enemy is.
Cars, signs and human bodies were utilized by anti-Trump protesters in Arizona to keep supporters out of a Trump rally in Fountain Hills last Saturday. The individuals parked vehicles sideways on the neighborhood’s main thoroughfare, successfully blocking both lanes. Traffic was backed up for miles. Later the same day, more protesters crowded outside the Tucson Convention Center where Trump was speaking, shouting “No more hate!” and “Trump the racist!”
Residents of Arizona aren’t the only ones loudly voicing their dissatisfaction. Protesters in Salt Lake City tried to breach the venue doors of a Trump rally and scuffles between protesters and police officers in Chicago caused Trump to cancel his rally there.
Donald Trump has been both widely hailed and criticized for his stated plans to create a wall between Mexico and the United States in his attempt to control illegal immigration. The workability of Trump’s plan is in debate, but the costs are not. The Government Accountability Office estimates that completing the wall will cost between $15 billion and $25 billion. An additional $750 million will be required per year to maintain it.